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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · key · saw · ball · tear · trunk · hand · drill

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. key — the most important part
  5. drill — army training
  6. tear — from crying
  7. hand — in cards
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. kid — to tease
  10. hand — help
  11. tear — to rip
  12. ball — a great time
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. drill — a practice
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. tear — from crying
  17. key — for a lock
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. kid — child
  20. saw — the tool
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. key — in music
  23. saw — the tool
  24. ball — a dance

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com